In Pics: Preparations For Dragons

Munster trained in the summer sun at Irish Independent Park yesterday as preparations continue for the arrival of Newport-Gwent Dragons on Saturday. See the action shots and get the pre-match thoughts of Munster centre Denis Hurley here.

Click here to see our training gallery.

With four wins in their last five league games, and with victories over Leinster, Ulster and Connacht this season, Hurley is understandably wary of this weekend’s opposition.

“Dragons have nothing to lose and for them to finish off their season, they would love to have the scalp of Munster, and we have to be mindful of that. The way the top 4 is finishing up, it is quite tight. We obviously want to be winning. Dragons would love to upset that. Our focus has to be this weekend on making sure we are ready to get into action, and it’s going to be a physical battle. But with the home support behind us, it should be a good afternoon.

“If you look back at the last game we played them, 3 of our tries came off mauls and I think that just showed that our physicality needed to be right up there. I would imagine it will be quite physical from the beginning. We have to be mindful of where we play the ball in the park – we don’t want to be giving away sloppy penalties in our half and let them get on the scoreboard. That said, we still have to keep the scoreboard ticking over.”

Munster enter the final round of regular season action hoping to secure a home semi-final with Glasgow Warriors, Ospreys and Ulster also vying for a top 2 finish.

“We haven’t had a home semi in a number of years. After we got knocked out of Europe it was tough on us, and on our supporters as well. We want them to have a day out, and we obviously want to play in the final. The best advantage to get into the final is having a home semi so that’s what we are playing for this weekend. It’s out of our control to a degree with two other teams ahead of us, both of them winning will put pressure on us. But we just have to mind our jobs, get our job done here and see what happens elsewhere.”

Like Head Coach Anthony Foley earlier this week, Hurley is also looking forward to big home support at Irish Independent Park on Saturday (KO 3pm).

“It’s great during the warm up to have the fans in the stadium. You get excited about the game coming up. As big a game as this is, it’s a great one for the fans to get involved in, so it should be a great atmosphere this weekend.”

Join us on the #HomeRun from just €;20 for Adults, while great value family packs are available from €;40. Purchase tickets online here, from the Munster Rugby Ticket Offices at Irish Independent Park and Thomond Park, or by calling 0818 719300.